The open road: 2010 summer trip day 9 & 10

The date was July 24th, a Saturday. The big air show (remember, this trip has a real destination!) started in 2 days on the following Monday. With 700+ miles to cover, we figured it’d be doable in 1 day, even though it’d be a little bit of a stretch. That gave us a free day to bum around Memphis and see the sights.

The Peabody Hotel is famous because some hunters played a drunken prank and dumped some ducks (used as live decoys) into the lobby’s fountain. It drew so much attention that the hotel owners decided that they should always have ducks in the fountain and a bellman volunteered to tend to them, thus, giving rise to the first Duckmaster.

Every day, the Duckmaster escorts them from the roof to the fountain and back again, much to the delight of the kids. They are certainly quite the happy ducks, but, you know, they are just ducks.

Beale street is a requisite tourist trap for chotchkies and, apparently, beers to go. It’s closed off to traffic allowing the street performers to use it as a veritable stage for with to display their talents to those with generous pockets.

I have vague memories from my youth of eating at Frank’s Bar-B-Q shop (home of the Dancing Pigs sauce). I’m not sure how long my dad has known Frank, but he and Jim were warmly welcomed upon arrival. Memphis bar-b-q, with its tangy vinegar base that is minimally sweet, is the quintessential bar-b-q for me.

The next day, we were rolling down the road at 0615 local. I’d done quite a bit of studying to find a route that would get us off the slab and into some fun roads the first part of the day. Little did I know that Dad was still not entirely comfortable on his newish R12. While I was having fun at a fairly relaxed pace, I ended up causing undo stress on him as he was still finding the groove of the new ride.

I always wonder what former glory such buildings used to be — and, what they were used for.Nikon D70, ISO 640, ƒ/3.5, 1/800sec, 18mm focal L. @27 MPH, ~73mi from prev photo, map

As we skirted around St. Louis, I was struck with surprise when the Gateway Arch came to view. The family visited it when I was a kid, but, it seams more impressive now. It’d be more fun to take the stairs through it.

The sun was setting as we made the last few miles toward Beaver Dam, washing the Wisconsin countryside in that warm light of the Golden Hour. We got off the slab and nabbed some side roads, capping off the day perfectly.